SAS sells Model Risk Management as one module of its risk-software portfolio on the SAS Viya platform, mainly to banks and insurers that already run SAS for credit risk, stress testing and regulatory capital, and adds AI-governance products (AI Governance Manager, AI Navigator) alongside it.
What is SAS Model Risk, and which banks use it?
SAS Model Risk Management is a module of SAS Institute's risk software, launched in April 2015, that keeps a bank's model inventory, runs validation and findings workflows, and monitors model performance on SAS Viya. SAS is private and founder-owned, with just over $3 billion in annual revenue. None of our 100 banks is named as a current customer in a live SAS source. Pricing is not published. SAS's public model-risk material still references SR 11-7; we found no SAS statement on SR 26-2.
Category
Founded
2015
Headquarters
Cary, North Carolina
Ownership
Product of SAS Institute, which is private and founder-owned (Jim Goodnight and John Sall); SAS has said since about 2021 that it is preparing for an IPO, but as of May 2026 no listing was scheduled.[15]
Deployment
Software on the SAS Viya platform (cloud-based)
Pricing
Enterprise software licence, sales-led; typically bought as part of a broader SAS risk or Viya contract. · not published
Banks among the 100
0
- SAS launched SAS Model Risk Management at SAS Global Forum in April 2015 as a model-governance solution for banks; it now runs on the SAS Viya platform.
- Core functions, per SAS: model candidate assessment, inventory and attestation, documentation in the bank's own templates, validation workflows, findings and action plans, performance monitoring with thresholds and alerts, and aggregate model-risk reporting; it stores in-house and third-party models.
- SAS Institute is private and founder-owned; Forbes reported in May 2026 that it generates just over $3 billion in annual revenue and that an IPO it has discussed for about five years is not scheduled.
- Chartis has placed SAS as a category leader in model risk governance repeatedly (SAS cited a 10th year in 2023) and in AI governance solutions in March 2026; these are analyst ratings SAS publicises, not customer evidence.
- SAS added AI-governance products beside MRM: SAS AI Governance Manager for regulated industries, and SAS AI Navigator, a SaaS inventory of AI models, agents and use cases announced in April 2026 for Q3 2026 availability.
- SAS's public model-risk material still frames US requirements around SR 11-7; as of 2026-09-24 we found no SAS page on SR 26-2, which replaced it in April 2026.
- In May 2025 David Asermely, described as SAS's global head of MRM solutions, left to join ValidMind, a competitor.
What does SAS Model Risk sell to banks?
| Product | What it does | Status |
|---|---|---|
| SAS Model Risk Management[1][2][8] | Model inventory, candidate assessment, documentation, validation and findings workflow, monitoring and model-risk reporting on SAS Viya. | Generally available |
| SAS Model Manager[11] | SAS Viya model-management component that SAS lists alongside Model Risk Management in its model-lifecycle governance stack. | Generally available |
| SAS Governance & Compliance Manager[11] | SAS GRC module (incident management, risk assessment, KRI monitoring) that can be integrated with Model Risk Management on Viya. | Generally available |
| SAS AI Governance Manager[12] | SAS product for regulated industries such as banking and insurance combining governance, policy controls, MRM and model deployment. | Generally available |
| SAS AI Navigator[14][7] | Standalone SaaS registry of AI models, agents and use cases with importable policy packs, gap alerts and audit trails; announced April 2026 for availability on Microsoft Azure Marketplace in Q3 2026, with a private preview. | Announced |
How much does SAS Model Risk cost?
How it is charged: Enterprise software licence, sales-led; typically bought as part of a broader SAS risk or Viya contract..
SAS Model Risk does not publish a price list.
Pricing is not published. SAS's Model Risk Management product page and solution brief carry no price and direct buyers to sales; the solution brief cites potential model-governance cost savings of 20% to 30% from McKinsey assessments and customer results, but no licence cost.
Which banks use SAS Model Risk?
None of the 100 largest US banks covered on this site is publicly named as a SAS Model Risk customer as of Sep 24, 2026. Customers the company names are listed in the key points above.
Among the 100 largest US banks on this site, from sources that name the bank: the bank, SAS Model Risk or the press. Status is the furthest stage a source confirms.
What is SAS Model Risk Management on SAS Viya?
A centralized model inventory with candidate assessment, documentation and workflow management, model review and validation, findings and action plans, performance monitoring against thresholds, and model-risk dashboards; it can be combined with SAS Governance & Compliance Manager and SAS Model Manager on Viya.[1][2][11]
What has SAS Model Risk done, and when?
- May 15, 2026
IPO timing uncertain[15]
Forbes reports Goodnight still wants an IPO but that SAS is not yet ready, and that its CFO is preparing alternatives including a minority investment.
- Apr 28, 2026
SAS AI Navigator announced[14]
At SAS Innovate, SAS announces AI Navigator, a SaaS AI-inventory and governance product, for availability on Microsoft Azure Marketplace in Q3 2026.
- Mar 12, 2026
Chartis AI governance category leader[12]
Chartis names SAS a category leader for AI governance solutions among 28 vendors; SAS previews AI Navigator and describes AI Governance Manager.
- Oct 29, 2025
MRM on Viya integration described[11]
SAS describes combining Model Risk Management with Governance & Compliance Manager, Model Manager and other Viya components for model governance.
- May 12, 2025
SAS's MRM solutions head leaves for ValidMind[10]
David Asermely, described as SAS's global head of MRM solutions, joins competitor ValidMind as VP of global business development.
- May 5, 2023
Chartis leader in model risk governance and validation[9]
Chartis rates SAS a category leader in model risk governance (SAS says for a 10th year) and model validation, based on the cloud-based SAS Model Risk Management.
- Apr 27, 2015
SAS Model Risk Management launched[8]
SAS rolls out Model Risk Management at SAS Global Forum as a model-governance solution giving banks a complete view of their models, with inventory, validation, change and usage tracking.
- Jan 1, 1976
What do banks use SAS Model Risk for?
| Use | What it does | Status | Use case |
|---|---|---|---|
| Model inventory, validation and monitoring[1][2][13][4] | Central inventory with attestation, validation workflows, findings and action plans, and threshold-based performance monitoring for credit, market, fraud and other bank models. | In production | Model risk management |
| Third-party model records[2] | Stores attributes and assumptions for in-house and third-party models in the same inventory. | In production | Third-party & vendor AI |
| AI governance for regulated firms[12][6] | AI Governance Manager combines policy controls, MRM and deployment for banks and insurers; SAS publishes how it splits EU AI Act duties with customers. | In production | AI governance (general) |
| Inventory of LLMs and agents[14][7] | AI Navigator registers LLMs, agents and third-party AI tools against internal policies and regulations; announced for Q3 2026. | Announced | Generative & agentic AI |
What has SAS Model Risk disclosed in numbers?
| Metric | Value | As of |
|---|---|---|
| SAS annual revenue (Forbes) | just over $3 billion[15] | May 15, 2026 |
| Model-governance cost savings (SAS-reported, citing McKinsey assessments and customers) | potential 20% to 30%[3] | Sep 24, 2026 |
| Years as a Chartis model risk governance leader (SAS-reported) | 10[9] | May 5, 2023 |
| Countries with SAS customers | more than 150[5] | Sep 24, 2026 |
“AI governance isn't a compliance exercise – it's a competitive advantage.”[12]
Stu Bradley · Senior Vice President, Risk, Fraud and Compliance Solutions, SAS · Mar 12, 2026
“The biggest risk to any AI governance program isn't regulation; it's a tool so complex that no one uses it.”[14]
Reggie Townsend · Vice President, SAS AI Ethics, Governance and Social Impact · Apr 28, 2026
Who runs SAS Model Risk?
Which rules apply to a bank using SAS Model Risk?
| Authority | Why it matters here | Documents |
|---|---|---|
| Federal Reserve | SAS Model Risk Management is an inventory and validation tool for the models SR 26-2 covers; the bank must configure it for SR 26-2's narrower model definition and materiality tiers, as SAS's published MRM material still describes SR 11-7. | SR 26-2 |
| OCC | OCC 2026-13 sets the model-risk expectations the inventory and validation records must evidence; where the bank runs SAS on a SAS-hosted cloud, OCC's third-party guidance applies to SAS as well. | OCC Bulletin 2026-13 OCC Bulletin 2023-17 |
| FDIC | FDIC-supervised banks follow the same interagency model-risk guidance (FIL-15-2026) that SAS Model Risk Management workflows are configured to support. | FDIC FIL-15-2026 |
| EU AI Act | SAS has signed the EU AI Pact and publishes how it splits AI Act duties with customers; a bank with EU operations that builds high-risk AI, such as credit scoring, on SAS remains responsible as provider or deployer. | Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 |
Linked authorities have a page in the AI Regulation Tracker; the others are named for completeness.
What should a bank note before buying SAS Model Risk?
Analysis by BankingNewsAI from the sources cited on this page. Observations, not advice or a recommendation.
01
No current named bank customer in a live source
None of our 100 bank pages names SAS Model Risk Management, and we found no live SAS page naming a current US bank customer for this module; a buyer seeking references would need to ask SAS directly.
02
SR 26-2 is not yet reflected in SAS's public material
The SAS model-risk article and product pages we reviewed reference SR 11-7; we found no SAS statement on SR 26-2's materiality tiers or its exclusion of generative and agentic AI.
03
It is one module in a larger SAS estate
SAS positions MRM alongside Model Manager, Governance & Compliance Manager, stress-testing and regulatory-capital products on Viya, so fit and cost depend on the rest of the bank's SAS footprint.
04
Pricing is not published
SAS publishes no licence price for Model Risk Management; its only figure is a 20% to 30% potential governance cost saving attributed to McKinsey assessments and customer results.
05
Analyst ratings are SAS-publicised
SAS's Chartis category-leader placements (model risk governance, validation, AI governance) are analyst ratings SAS promotes, not independent customer outcomes.
What are the alternatives to SAS Model Risk?
ValidMind
Model inventory, validation and documentation automation, monitoring and AI governance for banks; agent controls in early access.
Credo AI
AI governance SaaS: registry of AI use cases, agents and vendors, policy packs (EU AI Act, NIST AI RMF, ISO 42001), agent controls.
Monitaur
AI governance SaaS: inventory, common controls, vendor governance, drift and bias monitoring, and FlightSim black-box AI testing.
Yields
Model risk management and AI governance platform: model inventory, tiering, workflow engine, documentation, validation and monitoring.
How much does SAS Model Risk Management cost?
SAS does not publish a price for Model Risk Management. It is licensed through sales-led enterprise contracts, usually as part of a broader SAS risk or SAS Viya agreement. The only figure on SAS's solution brief is a potential 20% to 30% saving in model-governance costs, which SAS attributes to McKinsey assessments and customer results -- a vendor-reported claim, not a price.
Which banks use SAS Model Risk Management?
None of the 100 largest US banks tracked on this site is named as a current SAS Model Risk Management customer in a source that is still online. Forbes reported in May 2026 that SAS earns revenue from most of the Fortune 100, including 90% of the financial-services companies, but that covers all SAS products, not this module.
Who owns SAS Model Risk Management?
It is a product of SAS Institute, the Cary, North Carolina, analytics company founded by Jim Goodnight and John Sall, which is private and founder-owned. Forbes reported in May 2026 that SAS makes just over $3 billion a year, that Goodnight still wants an IPO, and that the CFO is preparing alternatives such as a minority investment.
Does SAS Model Risk Management support SR 26-2?
SAS has not published SR 26-2-specific material that we could find as of 24 September 2026; its model-risk articles still cite SR 11-7. The product's configurable candidate assessment, model classification, validation workflows and monitoring are the functions a bank would adapt to SR 26-2's narrower model definition and materiality-based tiering.
Does SAS govern generative AI and agents?
Not through Model Risk Management itself. SAS sells AI Governance Manager for regulated industries and announced SAS AI Navigator in April 2026, a SaaS registry of models, agents and AI use cases due on Microsoft Azure Marketplace in Q3 2026. SR 26-2 leaves generative and agentic AI outside model-risk guidance, so those tools sit in broader AI governance.
SAS Model Risk Management vs ValidMind?
SAS Model Risk Management is a module of SAS's risk suite, on the market since 2015 and usually bought by SAS risk customers. ValidMind is a venture-backed platform founded in 2022 focused on automating model documentation and validation, which hired SAS's former global head of MRM solutions in 2025. Neither publishes prices.
- SAS Model Risk Management (undated page, retrieved 2026-09-24)
- SAS Model Risk Management Features List (undated page, retrieved 2026-09-24)
- Model risk management solution brief (undated page, retrieved 2026-09-24)
- Model risk management: Vital to regulatory and business sustainability (undated page, retrieved 2026-09-24)
- About SAS (undated page, retrieved 2026-09-24)
- The SAS Approach to the EU AI Act (undated page, retrieved 2026-09-24)
- SAS AI Navigator (undated page, retrieved 2026-09-24)
- With SAS(R) Model Risk Management, Banks Gain Clarity on Risk Models
- SAS a 10-year leader in model risk governance, per Chartis
- SAS Executive and Global Head of MRM Solutions David Asermely Joins ValidMind as Vice President of Global Business Development and Growth Strategy
- SAS Model Risk Management on Viya: Beyond ModelOps
- Chartis names SAS a leader in AI Governance
- The 2026 Mandate: Why Model Risk Management Is Now a Strategic Imperative
- SAS AI Navigator to bring order to AI chaos
- Billionaire Jim Goodnight Built An Analytics Profit Machine. AI Is Forcing Its Reinvention (Forbes reprint)
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